Boulder County crews take part in two climber rescue operations Saturday night

All 6 climbers invovled expected to be OK, officials say

Boulder County emergency crews on Saturday night orchestrated separate rescue operations on a climbing route on Boulder's third Flatiron and on the Redgarden Wall in Eldorado Canyon State Park, aiding six stranded climbers, according to officials with the Boulder County Sheriff's Office.

Boulder County sheriff's Sgt. Vinnie Montez said emergency crews from various Boulder County agencies were taking part in rescue efforts that were still underway at approximately 10:30 p.m.

Montez said it is expected that all six climbers -- three that were stranded on the third Flatiron and three more stranded in Eldorado Canyon -- would be rescued without suffering any serious injuries.

Officials first received calls about the group stranded on the Redgarden Wall around 6 p.m. Saturday, Montez said. Sheriff's deputies and crews from Rocky Mountain Fire Department and American Medical Response were among the agencies that responded to the call.

Officials on the scene reported the trio of climbers were in the middle of the climb when they "ran out of daylight," and began yelling out for help and were heard by other climbers who called police, Montez said.

When rescuers located the group, they determined the best course of action would be to use ropes to help them climb back to the top of the rock formation, where they could then led out on foot to where emergency crews were staging, Montez said.

Initial calls regarding the three climbers stranded on the third Flatiron came in at 7:29 p.m. Saturday, Montez said. The group had climbed up a standard route on the mountain and were preparing to rappel down when their rope became stuck, stranding them 200 feet above the ground, Montez said.

As darkness and cold, wet weather set in, the group called for help. Rescuers, including volunteers with Rescue Mountain Rescue, located the group, and, as of 10:30 p.m. Saturday, were in the process of performing a technical evacuation to get them off the mountain and down to where rescue crews were staging near the Bluebell Shelter, Montez said.

The group, made up of two men and one woman, are not suspected to be injured, but will be assessed to see if they might be suffering from hypothermia after being exposed to the elements for so long, Montez said.

"The climbers were really unprepared for the weather conditions," Montez said.

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